Heating pads have been in use for therapeutic medical purposes for many decades. Typically, a heating pad provides heat to various parts of a body for warming, pain relief and healing purposes. In the prior art, heating pads have a square or rectangular shape and may include straps for wrapping and holding the pad around limbs or other areas where the heat is directed. Specialized pads have been developed for specific purposes such as the hands in the form of gloves or a muff. Even heated clothing that covers a person's body has been developed for use in cold environments. However in the prior art a therapeutic heating sleeve that is particularly designed for use by an athlete to warm his or her arm and shoulders prior to going into the playing field was not located.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents that possess the novelty of the instant invention, however the following U.S. patents are considered related:
Pat. No.InventorIssue Date4,404,460KerrSep. 13, 19834,736,088BartApr. 5, 19884,764,665Orban et al.Aug. 16, 19885,839,043Okabayashi et al.Nov. 17, 19986,622,529CraneSep. 23, 20036,649,886KleshchikNov. 18, 2003
Kerr in U.S. Pat. No. 4,404,460 discloses a heat controlled clothing having multiple sections that are adapted to cover different areas of the human body. Electrical wires are employed which include bus wires and heater wires with circuitry controlling battery powered current flow.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,736,088 issued to Bart discloses a therapeutic heating pad having a laminate structure which concentrates the flow of heat in one direction. The laminate structures in the form of a flannel material, which is held in a tubular configuration to form a muff for fomentation of a body member inserted therein.
Orban et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,764,665 discloses a heated glove that includes an electrically-heated woven fabric. The fabric is coated with electrically conducting metal to enable its use as a heating element.
Okabayashi et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,839,043 discloses an induction heating fixing sleeve that is formed of a flexible thin electrically-conductive magnetic material in a coil, thereby producing eddy currents in the sleeve to generate heat.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,622,529 B1 issued to Crane discloses a personal dry-cleaning apparatus having a housing, a wetting means and sources of heat to form steam to be generated within a clothing bag.
Kleshchik in U.S. Pat. No. 6,649,886 B1 discloses a highly flexible and reliable electric heating cloth and method for providing a stable elevated temperature to an environmental site. The heating cloth consists of conductive resistive threads which are interwoven with non-conductive threads.
For background purposes and as indicative of the art to which the invention is related reference may be made to the remaining cited patent issued to Szymocha et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,550,471.